Road trip to Tawang: in my Alto K10

[Gaurav Chopra]

Beautiful going and captures!

 

[Kaanth]

Day 3: Jang to Tawang

Woke up at a leisurely pace knowing that Tawang is only 30 odd kms away. The sun was out shining and the dark, grey clouds of yesterday were nowhere to be seen.

A quick check around our little car, and off we went. Our first stop for the day was the Nuranag falls, 5 kms from Jang.

One can reach the base of the waterfall. Mists of cool water hit you as you get closer to the fall.

Some pictures:

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A bright sunny day in Jang

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Walking down towards Nuranag falls

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The falls from a distance

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Mists begin to hit you as you get closer

I am a fan of waterfalls where you can reach close to the water. The best part about this place was that it was totally crowd free. After spending some time here, we resumed our drive towards Tawang.

We had a heavy breakfast at one of the roadside dhabas. Turns out it is run by an Assamese family from Tezpur. At Rs.100/ plate which includes rice, dal, aloo fry, some sabzi and chicken, its value for money. I like driving on a full tummy haha.

Some pictures of the way to Tawang:

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Nice smooth roads

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No lack of rivers here

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Soaking up some sun

Soon, we reached Tawang. Since it was only noon, we decided to roam around and visit the Tawang monastery.

The clear weather had followed us to Tawang. The last time I had come here, Tawang seemed to be covered in a cloak of grey. This time, it was a very pleasant green.

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Some monks were busy studying here. It was very peaceful.

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There is a camp type setup run by the monastery for tourists I think. There was noone there however, so couldn't ask for details.

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Lovely prayer flags

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Near the entrance of the monastery

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Our little car

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A place for prayer

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At the monastery

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Soaking in the views

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Inside the monastery

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A little tired

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Monks busy with cricket

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Greenery

After leaving the monastery, we went back to Tawang town for lunch at a local hotel. There was a crowd of tourists who were making so much noise that it was getting on my nerves. I guess noisy tourists come as pack and parcel of any popular destination. The poor hapless waiter was having a difficult time keeping up with the numerous orders. We ordered boiled chicken with vegetables and rice. As our dish was simple to prepare, we were served earlier much to the annoyance of the noisy people haha.

There are a number of hotels in Tawang. We zeroed in on Hotel Mon Kyemojong a little away from the market. It has good views of the town and the staff is very courteous. Definitely recommended.

Upon enquiring from the hotel staff, we were informed that the local taxi operators were not allowing private tourist vehicles to go to Bumla and Sangetser lake. One had to book a sumo/ bolero from them for these places. This left a negative impression on my mind. Not that I would take my alto to such places, but if I had a capable vehicle I would definitely want to drive myself. However, I have read subsequent reports on other forums where people have driven their own cars on this route, so I think this might have been a temporary situation.

In any case, we booked a Bolero for the next day and checked in the hotel.

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Hotel

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Local kids

After resting for some time, we went to the local market for some shopping in the evening. As we walked we saw many structures having prayer wheels in the middle of road junctions. Some distance away from the market,
there was an elderly gentleman who was praying and turning these wheels. It was a very peaceful setting. My wife took this opportunity to say some prayers while turning the prayer wheels.

Day 4 and 5 coming up

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Wonderful pictures.

 

[navi007]

Nice photos bhai... so you traveled in April 2015???

 

[Gunin]

Just beautiful @Gunin . I was waiting for these beautiful lake and snowy white pictures. I'm glad that I've chosen Tawang as place to go. Even I wish to see the snow clad mountains when I intend to travel this month.

Thanks. April is a good time for Tawang. Lesser chances of rain and also post Tawang you get to enjoy the snow.

Nice picture gunin

Thanks

@Gunin ji

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Thank you

Nice show Gunin... amazing .. Missing Tawang like anything now... wish to run ASAP ...

Good decision for declining the challenge BTW.. such huge Yaks

Yeah those yaks are really massive. Tapas bhai, I am planning to see the new route via Rowta to Kalaktang. And then maybe Sangti valley. Lets see when that happens

Beautiful going and captures!

Thanks

Wonderful pictures.

Thank you

Nice photos bhai... so you traveled in April 2015???

Yes. Late April to be precise. Thanks

 

[sanuroxz]

Yeah those yaks are really massive. Tapas bhai, I am planning to see the new route via Rowta to Kalaktang. And then maybe Sangti valley. Lets see when that happens

That route is awesome.. one of my friend visited recently... and you can take a good break in Shergaon.. such a heavenly place...

 

[kprasad]

Yeah those yaks are really massive. Tapas bhai, I am planning to see the new route via Rowta to Kalaktang. And then maybe Sangti valley. Lets see when that happens

That route is awesome.. one of my friend visited recently... and you can take a good break in Shergaon.. such a heavenly place...

I've planned to take Dirang to Kalaktang route while descend/return journey. Will update once I complete.

 

[Gunin]

Day 4 continued:

We spent the rest of the day visiting some of the local areas of Tawang town. We visited the birth place of the 6th Dalai Lama. It is nestled in a very peaceful environment on the outskirts of the town. There is a big tree inside the premises which is believed to have healing powers. Locals take the fallen leaves and use it to cure various ailments-informed our driver for the day. We also took some of the fallen leaves.

After lunch, we went to the Tawang war memorial. Names of soldiers who have sacrificed their lives in the line of duty are inscribed here. Its a humbling feeling to be here.

Some pictures:

The birth place of the 6th Dalai Lama:

Tawang war memorial:

Next: Day 5 and the long drive back coming up.

 

[pyal_p]

Excellent, I want to try in December 2017, driving from Kolkata . Will contact you for few details. expect your fullest co-operatiion

https://www.bcmtouring.com/forums/threads/drive-from-kolkata-to-tea-estate-with-baikuntpur-forest-sundar-basti-in-the-darjeeling.68791/

 

[smoothwanderer]

gunin nice TL. superb snaps waiting for the rest.

 

[zutshiatul]

A Gr8 TL justified with Gr8 pics. Just for information can we get a taxi Ex-Tezpur Airport To & Fro for visit to Tawang for 5 days or so and an estimate cost of the same if you have any idea. Also can the return leg from Tawang to Tezpur be done in a day by road as it is around almost 300 kms. How is the mid Sept period to visit Tawang? would it be more rainy? Thanks.